Powered fingernail file



Feb. 2, 1960 F; J. HUNDT POWERED FINGERNAIL FILE Filed March 14, 1958 Illll.

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/NVENTo/e. F/EoER/cf( I HUA/DT BY POWERED FINGERNAIL FILE Frederick J.Hundt, Berkeley, Calif.

Application March 14, 19.58, Serial No. 721,575 2 Claims. (Cl. 132-75.8)

The present invention relates to an improved electrically driven rotaryabrasive for filing fingernails. v There is provided by this inventionan electric hand instrument adapted to safely and rapidly filefingernails. The device is quite small and easy to operate, so that aperson may readily employ same to tile their own lingernails andprovisions are included for guiding the operation and safeguarding theuser or a recipient of the tiling from injury or slipping. Thesimplicity and accompanying low cost of manufacture of the device ofthis invention makes same widely applicable for home use as well as useby beauticians.

It is ari` object of the present invention to provide an improvedpowered file particularlyadapted for abrading fingernails,

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improvedelectrically driven fingernail trimmer with movable guard means forprotection and nail alignment.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide in a devicefor powered fingernail filing a spring mounted linger guide forfacilitating controlled filing and for protecting fingers from damage.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some ofwhich, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the followingdescription of the preferred form of the invention which is illustratedin the drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification. It isto be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by thesaid drawing and description may be adopted within the scope of theinvention, as set forth in the claims.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure l is an elevational view of the invention with a portion brokenaway as indicated to show the guide mounting.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken in the plane 2 2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken in the plane 3 3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the head end of the invention in thesame plane as Figure 2 and showing an alternative embodiment.

Considering the invention in some detail and referring to Figures 1-3 ofthe drawing, there will be seen to be provided an elongated housing 11formed of a light strong material such as Bakelite and having a centraldepression formed in a planar side thereof. A cover 12 fits against theaforementioned planar housing side to define with the housing depressiona chamber 13. The cover 12 is removably atxed to the housing 11 as by aplurality of bolts 14 and the cover may also be formed of a materialsuch as Bakelite Both housing and cover have a reduced cross section ata head end of the housing and the cover extends somewhat short of thehead end of the housing, as best seen in Figure 2.

Within the housing chamber 13 there is mounted a small electric motor 16as by bolts 17 with a motor shaft 18 extending therefrom longitudinallyof the housing toward the head end thereof. The motor is adapted forenergization from a convenience outlet, not shown, by means of aninsulated electrical cord 19 extending through a bore in the bottom ofthe housing. The cord 19 includes a first electrical conductor 21connected directly to the motor 16 and a second electrical conductor 22connected through a switch 23 to the motor. The switch 23 is mounted asby bolts 24 in the housing with actuating means such as a buttonextending therethrough so as to be readily operated from the housingexterior.

At the head end of the housing 11 and disposed at the side thereoftoward the cover 12, as illustrated in Figure 2, there is rotatablymounted a small abrasive wheel 26. Mounting of the abrasive wheel 26 isaccomplished by -a shaft 27 extending axially therefrom through abushing into the housing and locked therein by a removable plug Z8threaded into the housing and engaging the shaft 27 in rotatablerelation. A collar or ange 29 about the shaft A between housing andwheel fixes the lateral wheel position and a bore 31 longitudinally ofthe housing-accommodates a motor shaft extension 32 in bushings or thelike 33. The motor shaft extension 32 is attached to the motor shaftproper 18 in a slip lit joint so that disengagement is possible byrelative longitudinal displacement and a bevel gear 34 on the end of theshaft extension meshes with a bevel gear 36 on the abrasive wheel shaft27. It will be seen from the foregoing that rotation of the motor shaft18 is transmitted to the abrasive wheel for rotating same about an axistransversely through the head end of the housing.

In addition to the above described elements of the invention there isfurther provided a guide or guard plate 37 having parallel longitudinalsides and disposed in sliding engagement within a-slot longitudinally ofthe housing cover 12. The guide 37 is oriented with a side thereoffacing the housing 11 and includes a lower shank 3S extending intoconnection with a piston 39 slidably disposed in a bore 41 formedlongitudinally in the cover from the bottom thereof. A plug 42 threadedinto the bottom of the bore 41 closes same and compresses a light spring43 disposed between the piston and plug so that the guide 37 isgenerally urged upwards out of the cover into a position overlying theabrasive wheel 26. The guide 37, which may have a reduced thickness atthe upper end thereof, extends over the abrasive wheel 27 and has theupper edge thereof formed with a concave surface 44 for receiving theend of a finger 46 of one using the invention. Additionally there isprovided means for retarding or damping motion of the guide in the formof a set screw 47 threaded transversely through the cover from the outersurface thereof to bear against the guide 37 therein. This set screw 47may be set to press lightly against the guide for damping motion thereofor may be tightened against the guide to fix the extension thereof from.the cover.

Operation of the present invention is accomplished merely by closing theswitch 23, whereupon an electrical circuit is completed through themotor 16 from an electrical power source, not shown, and connectedacross the leads 21 and 22 of the cord 19. Energization of the motorcauses the shaft 18 thereof to rotate and thus the attached shaftextension 32 rotates to rotate the abrasive wheel 26 and attached shaft27 through the meshing gears 34 and 36. Utilization of the invention tofile or trim lingernails is readily accomplished by grasping the housing11 in one hand and pressing upon the button switch, thereby to operatethe motor. A finger 46 to be operated upon is then pressedlongitudinally against the concave surface 44 of the guide 37 with thefingernail 48 then directed toward the rotating periphery of theabrasive wheel 26.

Pressure by the linger 46 depresses the guide 37 against the spring 43so as to bring the iingernail 48 into contact with the abrasive wheel 26and it is then only necessary to slidably pivot the linger on the guideend 44 to evenly file all of the fingernail and the amount of pressureexerted upon the guide determines the amount of iingernail filed oi bythe wheel. It will be appreciated that the wheel is removable as by apin connection or the like, so that different grit abrasive may be usedand a buiing wheel may be employed. i

An alternative arrangement of the head end of the invention isillustrated in Figure 4 wherein the abrasive wheel 25 is directly fixedto the end of the shaft extension 32, which extends through the top ofthe housing. In this arrangement no offset drive is provided, butinstead the abrasive wheel 26 in eifect rotates upon the end of a motorshaft and a consequent saving in complexity and cost of manufacture iseffected. The guide 37 is herein oriented to be in close proximity withthe periphery of the wheel and the thickness of the cover may berninimized to eiect this disposition. Operation of this embodiment isthe same as above stated for the rst described embodiment With the onlydiierence to the user being that the wheel rotates in a plane displacedninety degrees from the plane of rotation of the offset model. In bothcases the rotating abrasive wheel serves to le down the contactingngernail and the guide with concave upper surface serves to brace thelinger, prevent pushing of the iinger away from the wheel by same,alignment of the fingernail with the wheel and close control over theentire filing operation for safety, precision of filing and ease of useof the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A powered fingernail tile comprising an electric motor, a housingabout said motor, an electric switch connected in circuit with saidmotor and extending exteriorly of said housing for energizing the motor,an abrasive-wheel positioned exteriorly of said.. housing, meansconnecting said wheel and motor for rotation of the former by thelatter, a guide having a platelike end overlying said wheel with aconcave surface thereat, means mounting said guide for resilientlyslidable relation to said wheel, means adjustably bearing upon saidguide for damping resilient motion thereof, said housing having adepression therein receiving said motor, a cover removably secured tosaid housing and having a slot therein receiving said guide in slidablerelation, said guide mounting means including a spring connected betweensaid guide and cover in said cover slot, and said adjustably bearingmeans including a set screw threaded in said housing into the slottherein for bearing against said guide.

2. A powered fingernail le comprising a housing including alongitudinally slotted portion, a motor mounted within said housing withcontrolv means extending exteriorly of the housing, a rotatable abrasiveWheel mounted exteriorly of said housing and operatively and removablyconnected to said motor for rotation thereby, an elongated guideslidably disposed in saidslot and having a platelike end with a concaveend edge overlying said wheel, a plug removably closing .one end of saidslot, a compression spring Vdisposed within saidrslot incompresf sionbetween said guide and-said plug, and a set screw threaded in saidslotted housing portion into said-slot for adjustable bearing relationto said guide..

References Cited in the tile kof thisl patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

